Usually, the torque converter of a type containing therein a wet clutch is equipped with a so-called segmented housing generally including a first housing section or cover which is readily removable from a second housing section or impeller shell when inspection, repair and/or exchange of the converter parts contained in the housing is required.
One of the segmented housings employed in the conventional torque converters generally comprises a first housing section or cover, a second housing section or impeller shell, two axially aligned flanges respectively fixed to respective open ends of the first and second housing sections via welding, an O-ring disposed between the two flanges, and suitable numbers of screws passing through aligned holes formed in the flanges for connection of the first and second housing sections.
However, in this conventional construction, the welding applied to connect each flange with the corresponding housing section must be done so as to achieve a complete seal, thereby requiring a use of highly advanced but costly welding technique in construction of the housing. Furthermore, because of the O-ring located between the two axially aligned flanges, the axial length of the housing is inevitably increased thus making the mounting of the torque converter assembly in a vehicle body considerably troublesome.